The great doors creaked shut behind me with a thunderous finality. Behind them, the ballroom hummed with the soft, velvet tones of polite society. Here, in the hushed hall of the east wing, only the slow tick of a grandfather clock broke the silence.
Zoë Windsor stood by the tall windows, bathed in moonlight. Her arms were crossed behind her back, her gaze fixed outward, though I knew she'd heard my footsteps.
"You called for me, Lady Zoë?"
She turned slowly. Her eyes, twin shards of frosted glass, caught the light with a predator's calm.
"I lost a pendant on my way to the castle," she said, voice flat as iron. "Somewhere in the forest. It's a very old family heirloom." A pause, then the soft twist of a blade beneath silk: "You wouldn't want me to get upset, would you?"
Her smile curled like smoke. Sweet. Poisoned. A trap hidden in tulle and pearls.
I swallowed hard, unspilled tears pricking behind my eyes. I knew what this was. Not a request. Not even a command. A test. A punishment dressed in velvet.
[Not good, the System chimed, clipped and dry. Stay calm. Don't do anything rash.]
Behind me, the ballroom laughed. The castle listened. Zoë turned back to the window, dismissing me with her spine.
"That'll be all. Do return before the cusp of sunrise. We wouldn't want Regina to worry."
I bowed, barely. Then turned and walked, my footsteps hushed against the marble.
As if the marble pitied me.
As I passed into the cold garden air, a single, clawing thought echoed in my head:
She knew. She knew I'd be sent to the forest.
The moon hung low like a secret not meant to be kept. I stepped into the trees without looking back.
---
The forest was not silent.
It breathed. Whispered. Moaned.
Leaves rustled with stories that ended in blood. Trees leaned too close. The wind carried a pulse—like a heartbeat pressed too hard against your ribs. An uneasy lullaby.
Still, I walked on.
Pale blooms curled at the base of a black-barked tree, glinting faintly in the dark like they were breathing.
And then—
Grrrrrrrr.
Low. Gravelly. Hunger on four legs.
I turned.
It emerged from shadow. Half-beast, half-armored nightmare. Red eyes gleamed like rubies sunk in gore.
It roared—and lunged.
I barely had time to scream before the air shimmered—warped—
[ Paige appeared. ]
She didn't speak. She didn't need to.
Her blade flashed silver under moonlight as she met the monster mid-air.